


Temptation

by seifersfire



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-02
Updated: 2016-08-27
Packaged: 2018-05-24 09:16:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6148789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seifersfire/pseuds/seifersfire
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It should have been simple.</p><p>It really should have been simple. </p><p>Stunningly attractive elf that hates mages. </p><p>. . .</p><p>To make a long story short, it wasn't simple.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"You know, Varric, for being of the male persuasion I have to appreciate your ability to decorate. It's all very robust," Hawke stated swaggering into the dwarf's rooms with a deceitfully pleasant grin on her face.

Varric chuckled lowly from his chair at the head of the table, "I'm not sure if you need something killed or if we need to go over how much Bianca doesn't share, again."

Hawke nabbed a chair and swung it around before lowering herself to the seat. "Oh don't get yourself in a twist. I'm just hopelessly bored."

"With all the jobs we have I tend to wonder why."

She turned her head, sporting a rather adorable pout. "I'm just a poor mage-ling! All on my own! In Kirkwall! Pardon me if I have to wait on back up every once in a while. Carver is with Gamlen today, they found some work at the docks and Mother could use the opportunity to eat well for a little while." Her ire was not hidden in her tone or her face. The slight snarl marring her features was a shame, she was a pretty thing and was all too aware of it. She had long dark red hair she tended to keep in a braid that fell to her waist, framing her hips as she walked. Bright green eyes peered at you from a heart shaped face and pouty lips, she had a softer figure with supple breasts and not too wide hips and her legs went on for miles considering her somewhat short stature. She was taller than Varric but was more than overshadowed by her brother, barely reaching the top of his shoulders. "Aveline is doing guard stuff and I hate to say it but, if things go sideways tonight, even with Bianca, I will most certainly be in the gallows by morning. Which I might add is very counterpoint to the whole my mother eating better or you know, not moping all the time."

"Excuses Hawke," Varric said, pouring her a glass of wine and then sliding the platter of bread and cheeses closer. The bite in his comment eased by the half grin on his face. "Well I suppose that's what I get for picking a Mage. You're a needy lot." He examined some documents on the table as she reached for some cheese, damn girl didn't get enough to eat. 

Her laughter bounced around them, "I'm pretty sure the aversion to not being imprisoned for life kinda transcends just mages."

"See now you're just being picky."

***

There were always two sounds that are heard when someone is knocked flat. There's the 'thud' that the people who did not get hit with the flying rock hear and there's the crunch that precedes your world going black without your consent. Aveline cringed as the slaver hit the ground, hard. A glance to her left revealed the Mage in question practically foaming at the mouth in rage. "Did you have to cave his skull in just for calling you short?"

"He's lucky the rock didn't zap what was left of his brain."

Aveline shook her head in what she hoped was perceived as disapproval, it would not due to have Hawke knowing she found the girl unrepentantly adorable. "You are aware I'm a guard and we are actively breaking into homes and maiming slavers? Do you have no regard for the law?" It would have sounded much more authoritative had the exhausted affection not crept into her tone. 

"I respect the law, that's why I usually do this stuff where the guards don't see me, it's a win win, besides do slavers not deserve to be maimed or should I maim them less because I don't happen to have your uniform? Which now that we're on the topic, it's not very inconspicuous of you to wear that." Hawke muttered, leaning on her staff while Varric searched the dingy home in the alienage.

Aveline glowered, "I'd say you have a point but one look at me face and it would be over. Do you know how many female gingers are in Kirkwall? Two and the other is squarely up in Hightown. Anyway, at least this way I can do damage control if we were to be discovered."

Varric trudged out of the back room with a scowl on his face, generally that only meant one thing. Hawke's curious expression faded and darkened, dammit, they had been set up. She didn't have time for this! They needed to get Bartrand's expedition underway, she had to get her mother and brother out of the slums. It was her magic that put them in Lothering and in the path of the blight. It was her responsibility as the elder sibling to care for them. And it was all her fault that they now existed in the squalor of Lowtown.

"It's empty," he announced. 

"Anso had best have a good reason for this," Hawke grumbled. She shouldered her staff and made for the exit with Varric and Aveline in tow. When they emerged from the hovel there was nothing to brighten the mood, they were surrounded.

"That's not the elf!"

"They said to capture whoever left the house."

Any deliberation was lost to Hawke as she called on her mana, letting her anger manifest itself into a massive tempest above the metal clad idiots. Her fingers tingled with electricity as she wove her staff through the dry air stepping forward and casting mind blast on the group, satisfaction racing in her veins when most staggered, disorientated from the blast. 

Aveline stepped in with perfect timing, cleaving her way past the wall of slavers surrounding them. The sing of Varric's crossbow was music to her ears as she watched the few stragglers hit the ground. 

There was a flurry of sound from the entrance of the alienage and with a twist of her hands chain lightning erupted from the tip of her staff slowing the onslaught of slavers just long enough for her to call forth stonefist. Between her magic, Aveline's sword, and Bianca the slavers were dealt with rather quickly.

She moved towards the exit with purpose, Anso likely couldn't have gotten far and maybe there was a chance this whole evening had not been for naught. As she reached the stairs she was approached by another slaver. 

"I don't know who you are friend, but you made a serious mistake coming here."

Hawke just glared at the man. Was he not aware of the dozen men she cut down? Honestly, common sense had taken a severe dip since she arrived in Kirkwall, at least Fereldans looked at what was plainly in front of their faces from time to time.

"Lieutenant! I want everyone into the clearing, now!"

The response to his rallying cry was somewhat satisfying, the shuffle of a man obviously struggling to walk, the thud of the slavers armor as he collapsed at his superiors feet did a slight bit to raise her mood. The confusion that was ever so present in the, for the moment still breathing, slaver was somewhat delicious but it also begged the question, what or whom had killed the other men. Footsteps heralded an answer to her question but the taint of lyrium in the air had Hawke quickly strapping her staff to her back, Templars usually smelled of lyrium and Hawke had no want to visit the gallows today.

Varric, bless his heart, shifted to the front of the group, leaving herself out of the limelight so to speak as the stranger came around the corner. 

"Your men are dead and your plan has failed. I suggest running back to your master while you can." An elf, he was tall, almost ridiculously so for his race. Her first reaction was relief, the lack of shiny armor and chantry symbols was most reassuring, so no need to assume that she was gallows bound yet. Her second was a bit more complicated and extremely out of ordinary for herself, he was almost entrancing. He had a lithe build but moved with the grace of someone who had obviously seen battle and was quit assured in his abilities and his eyes were just the perfect shade of green. The shock of white hair on his head only accentuated the darker tone of his skin and were those... She inhaled deeply testing for the tang of lyrium. Yup, those were lyrium lines etched into his skin. Was he a Mage?

"You're going no where slave," the slaver snarled. He grabbed the elf's shoulder in an attempt to restrain him. She felt what she would normally associate with a smite gather but instead of bursting forth with stinging energy that usually left her holding her head as her stomach voided itself, all she felt was a shift of air, as if the elf were no longer occupying the space in which he actually stood. Oh and he started glowing.

With a morbid fascination she watched the elf reached into the slavers chest and literally crushed his heart. "I am not a slave."

A woosh of air greeted her when he stopped glowing, for all intent and purposes the lyrium in his skin went dormant, leaving nothing other than an awkward silence between them. Feeling more sure and noticing Varric struggling with conversation that usually came so easily to the silver tongued dwarf Hawke stepped forward.

"My apologies. When I asked Anso to provide a distraction for the hunters I had no idea they'd be so numerous." His voice was low and rough, but smooth as it slid across her skin. Luckily it would be difficult to see the blush she sported in the midnight hour. Her gaze traveled the length of his arms and the gauntlets that cased his hands. It looked as if those lines covered his whole body. She wondered how his skin might flavor the lyrium tattoos. Sighing she mentally shook herself, she had better things to do then stare at pretty elves in the moonlight. "I take it these men were looking for you?"

"Correct. My name is Fenris. These men were Imperial bounty hunters seeking to recover a Magister's lost property. Namely myself." It was almost an atrocity that lips that full and beautiful were made to paint his contempt. "They were trying to lure me into the open. Crude as their methods were, I could not face them alone." A barely there curling up of those lips and a slightly softer tone hinted at the man beneath his rather pointy armor. "Thankfully, Anso chose wisely."

"Anso's job did seem a little too easy," she conceded, with a smile.

After a short conversation, that involved more mental fortitude than she would like to admit it took for her to not stare at him like a bumbling fool and actually pay attention to what Fenris was saying, landed her squarely under two simultaneous glowers. She weathered her companions ire until Fenris was safely out of earshot and then turned back to them. "What?"

Aveline snorted, "Are you even aware of what you just agreed to?"

"Well of course I am," Hawke huffed, crossing her arms. "Otherwise I wouldn't have agreed to it now would I?"

"Hawke, I'm in your corner in a lot of instances and I'll stay in your corner as long as you can tell me anything about the job you just lined us up for," Varric mumbled. "Because normally 'I'll find someway to repay you' doesn't coincide with getting paid."

Hawke opened her mouth to retort when her eyebrows drew together in confusion. Wait, what had he said... Oh, yes. They were going to take on a Tevinter Magister for someone she had literally met moments ago, in the alienage, at night, for no money. "Makers breath Varric, I'm sorry. Aveline you don't have to accompany us, I know this isn't something you would approve of. I'll nab Carver. Can you get back to the barracks alright by yourself?"

Aveline sighed, "Don't worry about me." She turned to their non-starstruck companion. "Make sure she doesn't get killed because of a pretty face, please?"

"I'm sure Carver will be a most sufficient mood killer, m'lady," he chuckled. 

***

The door to the Hanged Man closed with a tad more force than usual, considering the fuming, very large, man whom was trailing behind Hawke. "We need to work on your timing, sister."

The way he said the word 'sister' you would think he meant 'vile darkspawn from hell'. "You said you'd help when it came to the expedition. I'm sorry if it happened to be when you had your tongue halfway down someone's mouth. I swear, if I hadn't come to get you tonight you'd only be grumbling about how I left you out in the morning, are you never happy?"

Varric sighed heavily and trudged behind the two. When accompanying the Hawke siblings there was an understanding, they made bickering a sport. It didn't help that the two were so diverse either. Carver was tall and built where Hawke was short and soft. Carver was self-conscious where Hawke was self assured. It made logical sense, but understanding does not take the headache away. 

"Of course I'm happy, you never get to see it though because it never happens when you're around." Carver snarled, while securing his sword to his back. 

Varric chuckled, the kid had some bite to him but he was still too focused on further belittling his sister to, you know, think about what he was saying.

"Then why, dear Maker, why are you always asking to follow me around?!"

"Asking to follow you! Ha! I'd rather lop off Gamlen's toe and eat it for dinner," Carver's laugh held no mirth whatsoever. Their spat had lasted through much of Lowtown and while it was acceptable in the area they currently occupied, it would not be welcome in Hightown, which was why he waited until the last few steps before they ascended before he opened his mouth again. "But it beats hanging around and watching Mum mope because of your spectacular failure as the eldest." 

He kept going leaving Hawke and Varric farther behind.

"Well, I'll give him one thing, he always knows where your soft spots are," Hawke said quietly, picking up her pace. It would not due to have her brother run off and get jumped without them. 

"He didn't mean it. He just needs to calm down," Varric mumbled staring distastefully after the man child. 

"I know, he's just such a shit."

"And you're a walk in the woods near a blight, sister. Can we get this over with?"

***

Twenty minutes and way too many abominations later Hawke re-evaluated Fenris from safely behind her rather large brother. "Yes, I am a mage." She answered plainly at his suddenly quite hostile demeanor. "Is that a problem?"

Carver's grip on his sword tightened and he shifted his weight, ready to meet the elf head on if need be. He honestly wasn't completely sure he could stop Fenris but this wouldn't be the first time he had clonked someone over the head for his sisters sake. She would know to run and leave the dirty work for him.

The smell of decaying flesh and shuffling feet interrupted the moment outside the foyer. The main room had yet to be cleared. Varric readied Bianca and turned his eyes to the door that stood between them and a room full of trouble. "A little clarification on that last bit would be great right about now." The dwarf's tone was understandably clipped with tension. 

"This not the place for such discussions," Fenris stated. "My sword is yours, for now." He took point at the door skirting farther around Hawke than was necessary. 

"How very comforting," Varric snarked. "And ominous."

The door came open and with a surprising amount of arm strength, especially for an elf, Fenris gave a good shove with his sword effectively clearing their entry point. "Danarius! Your pets will not stop us!" Hawke could practically feel the hate coming off him in waves. Someone had done something horrible to him and with a swell of pity she realized those beautiful tattoos were not something he willingly received. The fact that they were hunting a magister whom he had shown even more distaste than to her and that he was an escaped slave told her everything she needed to know. 

Hawke dove to her left as the abomination swung at her, it was so close she actually felt the air brush her cheek. She scrambled to get her feet underneath her while summoning stonefist. From her current vantage point she could see Varric perched up on the staircase while Carver and Fenris stood in the center of the room taking the brunt of the action. Her feet now firmly on the ground she called a tempest, aiming the damage just outside of her brother and the silver haired elf. The abominations caught in the storm cried out in agony. Across a field of lightning she met Fenris' eyes and surprisingly enough all she could see was disappointment and a touch of regret. 

She felt the same melancholy. It appears they would not be getting along after all. Not that she had entertained any such thoughts herself. She watched as he shifted his eyes to the left, alarm now present in his features. The impact to her left shoulder was solid taking the Mage to one knee and the crack of bone on stone was not reassuring. Inhaling through the pain she pushed with her other leg attempting to flee before she felt it grab her braid and...

More pain and the expected face meets floor action didn't happen. Hawke blinked and looked behind her. Carver stood there rather smugly, wiping his sword on the nearest piece of decrepit furniture with two halves on an abomination at his feet. "I think what you said before was I was such a shit. Maybe want to rephrase that now? Since I'm damn well certain that I just saved that pretty face, you wouldn't be nearly as attractive with a snaggle tooth ya know." Her gaze shifted to Carver's feet again as the halves started to ooze a bit. Well he had literally chopped the damn thing in half. She was pretty sure she giggled, although that was definitely adrenaline so things were understandably fuzzy. Why was there adrenaline again? She stumbled to the right catching herself on the railing for the stairs her knee positively screeching in agony. "I'd still be a damn sight prettier than you, asshat."

Varric laughed so hard he almost dropped Bianca. A joke was always funnier when it was true. "The mansion's clear for the moment, no Magister's to be found. She's going to need a healer. Wait here would you Carver, I'll go get Anders."

"I do have a life to get back to, her getting bandaged up helps the expedition in no way. Contractually I can leave guilt free," Carver groused.

Varric paused at the doorway. "Ok, I'll just tell your mother you left your injured sister alone with the Mage disliking elf to get laid."

"Move quickly dwarf."

Varric was already gone.

There were a few moments of tense silence between the three, awkward glances were tossed back and forth before Carver once again opened his trap. "If you have a problem with my sister you have a problem with me."

Hawke was fairly sure that rolling her eyes would not decrease nor increase her pain. 

Fenris regarded Carver thoughtfully, "I am not a fool, magic has its uses. Forgive me, I must seem ungrateful, however it could not be farther from the truth. Here is all the coin I have as Anso promised, also should you need help I am at your disposal."

"Are you sure I don't need to be watching for Templars at my doorstep? I saw the look on your face. I don't have the full story by any means, and..." Damn she didn't know she was capable of experiencing that much pain in one spot. "I'm sure you have reasons for disliking us, but I am not one of them. In fact I'm positive that I put my life in jeopardy twice at least to help you and as selfish as it might be I would really appreciate your word that you will not seek out the Templars."

She managed to look up to find herself being studied, like a creature identified but not. "You have my word, unless you give me reason not to."

"Could we get a tiny bit of clarification on that last bit?" Hawke parroted, sliding down the steps to sit. 

"Do you regularly practice blood magic or consort with demons?" Fenris asked. 

"Not on my list of things to get done this month, but any further out and I can't guarantee anything," she said through grit teeth. 

Carver looked between the two, it almost seemed like they were... No, he had to be imagining it. His sister flirted with everyone but she never really flirted. 

"Well I suppose I can work with that. Although perhaps weekly meetings to keep track of your progress might help." The elf was also smiling and so was she... Her knee was likely in pieces and she was smiling.

"Or I know who to visit when she disappears," Carver growled leveling a glare at the mage hater. 

"Seems like a waste of a perfectly handsome elf if you ask me," Hawke muttered dreamily.

Carver couldn't tell who was more shocked him or the elf.

"You are a charming creature to say the least. What is your name," Fenris asked, uncrossing his arms and facing his sister for the first time this evening.

"My name is Shay."


	2. Chapter 2

"So what's with that magical fisting thing you do?"

Anders snorted, moving to quickly hide the smirk that followed the boisterous woman's curious remark. 

Fenris did his best not to trip over the multitude of rocks that Sundermount supplied, along with spiders, the occasional mercenary and apparently, rather presumptuous pirates. "I'm ... Sorry?"

Said pirate flounced towards the front of their group consisting of Varric, Hawke and her mabari, Anders, and himself. "You know, when you stick your hand into people." She skirted around Hawke's dog warily muttering about cold wet noses in unwanted places.

Relief flooded Fenris when he realized the conversation was not going to be centered around the more carnal side of ... Well never mind. "Oh. That. Yes." He cleared his throat hoping a little of the awkwardness would dissipate from the conversation. "It's a ... talent." He ignored the rise of heat to his cheeks, however subtle it may have been. The group was out further into the wilderness than they would normally travel, but they had been promised a great deal of coin to come this far out. They were lucky there were still visible roads for them to utilize rather than mapping it out and other travelers had been few and far between. The last they had seen was that morning barely two hours into their hike, two Templars headed back to the Gallows. Luckily the Templars had not taken notice of either mages in their group or they did not wish to attempt a capture while the entire party was there. 

Varric chuckled, "I didn't know he could turn that pink. Did you Hawke?"

The redhead waggled her eyebrows suggestively. "Well as long as we are discussing magical fisting I suppose I could weigh in my expertise on the subject." Hawke teased letting her lightning sparkle visibly across her hand. Fenris flinched, slowing his pace even further. He was fairly sure she had no idea the effect her magic had on the lyrium in his skin. He had warned her men like him were rare, even in Tevinter. He could stand certain types of magic, the creation tree and elemental did not bother him in the least, they only registered as a cool breeze or a slight shift in temperature, but she was all lightning and it crackled against his skin with more intensity than the others. If she was angry it was truly unpleasant, he could feel the current of her power in his very teeth. 

"I just figured he could earn some coin but the picture you paint is much better sweet thing." Isabela purred a little too close to Hawke's ear for her liking. Goosebumps erupted along her arms as she subtly shifted away from the very tan and horny woman. "Personal space Izzy. We've discussed the concept, at length, with witnesses."

Fenris spied the mage's reaction to the clingy pirate, somewhat confused. Her mannerisms did not vary between companions. She had been open with said affections with everyone, himself included, only the wench had managed to make her uncomfortable. That begged the question, why? What was different? Why did he even care?! This Mage had been occupying his thoughts far more than she should have been as of late. 

Anders chuckled darkly trailing behind the others. "Good luck with that. I'm fairly sure she's going to need some time for 'personal space' to sink in."

Fenris privately and quietly agreed with the abomination. 

"At least she hasn't groped you, yet," Varric mentioned casually.

"That was truly inspiring, right up until the last part. Alas, I still do have one defense against wandering fingers. Tweak! Come here you slobber factory you!" Hawke crooned. The mabari responded with an immediate and obvious love for his mistress, only enhanced by the journey out of Kirkwall and the squalor of Gamlen's home. He barked happily running circles around her barely holding still enough for her to actually indulge in petting him.

"Why do you enjoy his affection? All he does is slobber all over everything." Isabela mumbled, now on the other side of Varric.

Hawke smirked, "He's very nifty with debt collectors and unwanted attentions as well. Also, believe it or not, he brings me my shoes in the morning so my feet don't get cold." She rubbed behind his ear in the way that made the mabari almost keen in delight. "And you'd be amazed the effect he has on Templars with too many questions, something about him staring at their shins like it's breakfast." A loud and low woof of agreement and a headbump of affection on her lower thigh greeted her proclamation. 

"Your dog won't always be around to save you from my attentions, kitten," Izzy cooed. 

Hawke laughed, returning to her full height while Tweak happily rolled in the dirt. "Well please let me know about any future ambushing attempts. It's only fair of course if I am to put in a proper showing and, since I have been given the opportunity, bedroom games are ever so much fun but no Templar armor, dear. I might just zap you on sight."

"While this is rather entertaining and just a little disturbing, we are also very close to the Bone Pit, as it's so aptly named. This is one of the bigger bounties we've landed in weeks. I don't know about you people but I plan to sleep in my bed tonight and not the bedroll I did not bring. Shall we ride in and save the day?" Varric said, pulling Bianca to the ready.

"Ride in and save the day? Well, we forgot the nonexistent horses in Kirkwall." Hawke' gaze darted briefly between the dwarf and her canine companion. "Given our current options, I'm not sure Tweak will take kindly to anyone riding him."

"It's a figure of speech, you ass, I don't want to ride your dog."

"Well, why not? Is my dog not good enough for you? Is that what this is Varric?"

"Children," Anders tone was patronizing to say the least. "Kill things now, argue about riding a bloody dog later. We have company."

Fenris looked past the abomination to be greeted with looters, here to gain any upper hand they could. He smiled and brought his sword up as he began walking forward, Hawke's ridiculously named mabari at his side. He had so been hoping to kill something today. 

"You're such a slave driver," Izzy slid both of her daggers free and promptly disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Hawke pouted a bit, magic was fun and flashy but she was a tad bit jealous of her friends abilities at times. Although in hindsight a mage that could disappear on will wasn't a bad idea when it came to escaping Templars. Note to self: talk to Izzy later. With precision she eyed the battlefield quickly taking out any archers or mages along the outskirts of the area while Fenris and Isabela danced at the heart of the mob, both utterly within their element. They seemed almost synchronized in their efforts despite only pairing two or three times in the field and Fenris certainly didn't feel the need to retain 5 meters of room in between himself and the rogue, unlike herself. It was truly depressing that she had been relieved when he acted the same way with Anders, at least it wasn't something specific to her that had Fenris acting that way. It was plain, he just hated mages.

Hawke shook her head, hoping to clear such thoughts. It was disturbing how much the circumstances affected her, she was their leader and as such needed to be focused solely on the mission ahead, not undeniably gorgeous ex-slaves.

***

As soon as they entered the mine all she could smell was sulfur, it seeped into her clothes and skin like oil. Hawke really disliked sulfur. That having been said, she did her damnedest to make sure no one could tell. Face impassive, alert to her surroundings, and staff at the ready the group moved farther in. It didn't take long before the noises ahead belied what exactly they were dealing with.

"Of course there are dragons," she muttered, glancing around the corner to case their numbers. Thank the Maker they were upwind of the beasts. "Fen, you first and make sure you get their attention. Anders keep Fenris alive until we've knocked off a few of the younger ones. Varric, you and Bianca get the little ones while they're distracted. I'll petrify the big one to make sure it can't do too much damage, Izzy you concentrate on that larger one while he's immobilized, once all the little ones are gone we converge on the bigger."

The plan went well on multiple occasions as they traversed the increasingly warm and humid cave. What was left of Huber's workforce gave them some information about a 'bigger' dragon that was further in the cave. Hawke ignored the man's warnings not to proceed and trudged further in swiping harshly at the sweat that had started dripping from her brow. Dragons meant treasure and treasure meant money. Last time she had checked money was the game plan.

***

In hindsight, perhaps a fully matured dragon had not been in the game plan after all. Treasure sure, but not the giant leather skinned torch of doom. Hawke had never been more grateful for Bianca's precision because she could flail spells at the damn thing from now until kingdom come and the magically resistant beast would only sneeze. The most she could do at the moment was hopefully hold it still for a few moments or perhaps slow down a blow headed towards her companions. Anders was in a similar boat, placing barriers and haste on the two melee warriors, occasionally attempting a mind blast in the hopes the dragon might get stunned. Varric's arrows sang true and landed in the dragons eye. It reared back and shrieked in pain, stunning Izzy and Fenris. 

The dragon landed shaking it's fearsome head to dislodge the shaft from its eye, luckily without turning either of her companions into a small bloody puddles on the ground. The relief that they would not be crushed was quickly dashed when the monster fixed it's working eye on Varric, who was now looking for cover.

There was a rather sturdy looking dwarf sized rock, but he'd never make it.

Hawke summoned stonefist and aimed for the arrow protruding from its eye. The shot landed and the dragon crumpled onto its side. The tail thrashed against the ground narrowly missing a recovering Isabela. Hawke felt Anders healing magic descend on the two as the beast heaved and began to rise. 

She registered the rib cage of the dragon begin to expand and smoke began to pour from it's nostrils. "Shit," she cried as she dove for the ledge. The fall wouldn't be deadly but that fire sure would be. As she went over the edge she immediately sought a purchase on the outcropping, attempting to slow or hopefully stop her fall. A large vine scaled the side and she latched on for all she worth. After the oh so disorienting sensation of her full body weight yanking on her shoulders and arms, she came to abrupt stop.

She could feel the heat off the stream of flames that erupted above her, however, she was very much not burned alive. Although considering the smell her hair might be singed. She grimaced at the acrid smell before beginning the arduous task of pulling herself up.

***  
Fenris had found his feet just in time to see Hawke disappear behind the dragon's flame. Without a thought he rushed up to the creatures extended neck bringing his sword down on the weak points. The dragon squealed in pain trying to pull away from the blade but it only dug deeper due to it's struggles. Tweak appeared at his elbow, latching on to the dragon's neck as well tearing and pulling at the vulnerable flesh.

Isabela reappeared at the beasts back legs, severing tendons with a deadly accuracy. The dragon shrieked as its hindquarters sunk to the ground, unable to rise or respond to the dragons call.

Fenris ignored the squish of mud and blood between his toes as he shifted his stance pulling the blade clean of the beasts neck before coming back down with all the rage that he found rolling through him. He should have protected her, not the other way around. He jolted when his sword met the ground and belatedly realized that he had beheaded it. 

"Hawke!" Isabela had dove for where she had fallen, Anders right on her heels. "How bad is it?"

"Well," came the entirely too cheeky reply. "I'm sure my mother won't notice too badly."

Fenris couldn't stop his eyes from falling on her. She had a few scrapes on her face and she was missing some hair that was suspiciously frizzy at the ends. He subtly shifted the sword point so he could lean on it, lowering his gaze to the ground. Her well being causing an unwanted flood of relief in his very soul, which only served to irritate him further. Was she his curse? Was her very presence doomed to make him feel too much, too fast? Why had he chosen to trade on master for another, she was only a cause of frustration for him. Fasta vass if he hand any kind of sense he would be on the next boat headed anywhere but Tevinter. 

"Fenris?"

The question jolted him, her voice far too close. He looked up, too startled by her proximity to take a step back. He had never let her this close before, careful to keep his distance since she revealed her magic. Where her presence had zapped and crackled against him now, now she almost buzzed, a pleasant feeling that seemed to soothe his very soul. Her lips looked so soft... How would they taste? His eyes blew wide, fairly aware she could tell he was panicking. She took three very deliberate steps back. 

"I'm sorry. You kinda blanked out on us there. I just wanted to make sure you were ok," she said, holding her hands up in surrender. "I won't come any closer. Please, let us know when you are ready and we can head back." She and Anders proceeded to the edge of the cave obviously trying to give him some room, although she did have to grab the abomination by his overtly fluffy shoulders to get him to comply.

Varric came towards him, a waterskin in hand. "Here, you've got dragon on your face."

The dwarf's levity was met the standard glower, he did however take the skin and a cloth that was also provided.

"So lemme see if I have this right, you didn't see her jump did you?"

Fenris lobbed the waterskin at his face.

Varric chuckled, catching it before any damage could be done. "Good to know."

"What exactly is good to know?" Fenris snarled. He pulled his sword out of the ground and secured it to his back.

"Nothing," the dwarf quipped. "So I suppose you have nothing to worry about, this time."

Fenris doubted his sanity would allow him to let her go adventuring without him or at least Aveline. He sighed, why did the thought of it being him make the cavern that was his chest ache? Why did he want things he shouldn't? Why had her lips looked so soft...


End file.
